Machine for unsealing can tops



Jan. 21, 1936. E. N. GAUTHIER MACHINE UNEALING CAN TOPS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 11, 1955 Jan. 21, 1936. E. N. GAUTHIER 2,028,202

MACHINE FOR UNSEALING CAN TOPS Filed April 11, 1935 2 Sheets-Eheet 2 jrnnnnullu lyl l 2 w {HIIIIFHHIHIIII 35 3 I 4% j 4/ g I 33 Patented Jan. 21, 1936 cl m . invention relates to :devices for imsfialing r opening thoseccans wherein the :cover or l id .of theicanzisengaged by a reverted flangeWhich embraces the, margin of the lid and is ,norma1ly --forced downward agaiustzthe side wall of the, can, xsuch zcans being known as. lock -seam ,oans, 1 and the-imam; object: of this invention 1 is to provide means-wherebysucha cant-as this may beun- -sealed and the :Lcovenremoved without: dama in 21: the bodyiofr thecan and a. further .object inthis oonnection is to provide; means which will unseal the top of thei can and: permit its. being-taken ofi, --and whichwil1.-..permit a-inew .top to beilputson theLoan-Jand the. can-Je-sealed. M'Ihisis oftents' times necessary in icanneries where cansihave been sealed' improperly andare leaky. Itis, then neoes'sary sto take .off 1 the imperfect cover; or H lid, replace it andagain bend tdownsthe margin of .ithe =1id-:and theflangenion the upper; end of the =20 wan body.

--A furtherobject in this connectionv is 130. pro- -vide means whereby the canton or lid-may, be un'sealed f-rom the body of thescan, theteontents #poured cum-other:materiaiplaced in the pan -and 125 M the; can sealed w-ithouti the .necessity. .-vof;i-t,h1f.0Wing iawawthe bodycof; the can.

teAieiurther object-. is to provide means on;- the sameemachineiwherebytthegedge of,- a ican quay Qbemanged outwardqin preparation;v for the appli- 'iz30' oationxof..aicoverzithereto.

V mGthertobjectsewilhappean,ina-thercoursepigthe ilfollowingt :description.

trsvMys invention issillustrated Lin .theiacoempany- -ing ldrawingsxwhereinz 23435 ze-Figure .1misan*elevationof: a:rpachine; cgnstructed in:accordance:with my invention;

asli'igure 2.1 is; a: section 011i the t line.....+,- QfiF .e-ureil; V viii-Figure 3t;is:.a;.sec tiona1 view: throu h-1mg. G H support showing means on the can support whererebyzthe :canzsupport may be utiiizedttqgflange a.

mean;

ezli igures 4,. 5.-and 6 are iragmentarmjseetional views through the can and throughtaiportion:of a45-sthe mechanisms-showing thezseveral;stepsin und sealingiancan.

i -Referring to the drawings; 1.0 designates aback iolate ori frames upon F which thseveralzparts L are amounted. Extending outward from T the. lower 114 end of the plate It! isavbearing. I l and.extending I upward through this bearing is a supportingrod 13;:1 ZKEEIhee lower; end of: this. supporting rodi fits within .a socket: I 3 .formed on .the'. upper end 10f wisupportingsirodtsection:1 l gwhich is ;;pivota11y upon thebmglset I'l ,.,a.nd; sn nvi edv ithi9 ipiece orgtreadle l8, at-its-io uter end. This ;,peda1 is designed to, ;be toroed upward toward the tpl ung- :er (rods! 2. s As co s-compressio p n J9 is; d posed ;within-.thes .socket -j 6; between i the piunger -1'Odjgl2 ;and the plunger ,rod -seotion -l 4. .flfhe siplwg eltir de ec iu z Q i S -.upcn i th he supno tingiplatelfl.t t'will b un ers oodltnat LthBfiUDPQIfiIIg head orsplate Zliandthe shaft .and -the lplunger lrod 2 are capable oi rotation withintthe socket: I 3. Mounted in hearings- 2| "and flrprojectingr from th tp t :1 i al em n .ryine; a-JQeVeIed grea W :3. urzp it d a .:right.aang1es;=to; the shaft 23 is a shat; 25 qarry- 15 n a v d a wh ehzfiwh chimes t-wi theibeveled gear 'gwheel u. This shaft is 1 driven .,by,, any suitable .means which nav be; a .motorhon might, be a; hand. wh e1 21; driven ffrgm sanyisuitable, source of power. k -j;the;shaft=;,25; will of course,; oause the rotation fithe t-sh ft ha t-; 3:.Q@ I i Q9092 lower end the plate or. head 28. Mountedi a .tubular :supporting QYQQ bracket 2 9 just behind thisirotatablethead 28 isa knife 30, whioh is also .ishown'in Figure 6;:this1gnifeg30heing adjustable ethrough-stheigbraeket 128.;s0 that it projects. ve'ry -.s1ight1y;.be1ow;.thei rota ab e he d @331 kei \:is: adjusted .by;;lqosening thesetsgrew 31, adjustingsthe knife-vandiiiht res ti t e i et screw, @but it wilLbe understoodthat v ot r qit p meanssmay; bewuseds where y t kni e swip adjustedstoicompensate I01. ;.W.ear or .to :s uit any spartieularstyleuof can. .Thepurpqse of r the knife wirilllbeflatemstated. Belo'w -theihead28 ,;there are attached to the twine]tflqoliLframe twqMerticalguid s desi nat i;. 3zua d;=.33.- .aaTheseiguides; are shown as! being sh e to theipiate sl 0L byimeans. 0f; the screws 34. Each ofiithese guides has atfacei which is tangential 340 .,.-.to accirelezdescribedaround;the; axis of=the shaft 3,1123 Lor sshafthseetionall This face of each of these guides 32. \formed .with; a T=shaped yereetioalaslotzandrsliding; throughgthese, slots are, the ;..s1ides;,36.end!:;3l, respectively, .W ?;h 11.;11p- A5 .peregendsgzcarry the unflanging wheels 38 and 39, v.n;respeotively.- a: Therwheelg38 has its, rim beve1ed inward: and-radially, as shownrelearlyinzfligure 3. .tnTherim of othe Wheels- 39 isv coneentric jto;,the; axis otithetwheelesaw These. wheels-38 and .39. are ro- 5o tatablyi mounted, upon pinsoribearing screws. 39a. :Theeslidesfifiiand 3'Lextend downwardahelow --ithe guidese32iiande33 as shown; in Figure; 1. 1 -;The essupportingrmember, I 0 carries .upon itnbelowithe .--::1ower;.ends -of theguides32 a transverse vslidewaw 6 The rotation of A 20 4B and operating within this slideway is a sliding bar 4| having two recesses 42 and 43 formed in its upper face. As shown in Figure 1, the left hand end of each recess terminates in a vertical stop wall 44. The recess extends longitudinally of the bar 4| from this stop wall and is gradually inclined upward.

It will thus be seen that as the sliding bar M is shifted to the left in Figure 1, that it will cause the slides 36 and 31 to move upward and that they will be held in this raised position until the slide bar 4| moves back to the position-shown in Figure 1. For the purpose of shifting this slide bar toward the left in Figure 1, I form the slide bar with the rack teeth 45. Meshing with these teeth are the teeth on a gear wheel 46 mounted upon a shaft 41 extending outward from the rear plate In. For the purpose of oscillating this wheel 46, I provide a vertical rack bar 48 having teeth 49 which engage the teeth of the gear wheel 46, the lower end of this rack bar being flexibly connected at 59 to a link which link is pivoted at 'its lower end to the pedal lever l6. Thus it will 'be seen that as the pedal is depressed, the plate 20 is moved upward and the'rack bar 38 is moved downward, turning the gear wheel in the direction of the arrow in Figure l, and shifting the slide H in the direction of the arrow thereon, thus forcing the wheels 38 and 39 upward. As shown in Figurel, the rack bar 48 is disposed behind the slide ll and the wheel 46 is of sufficient thickness to permit both sets of rack teeth to engage the. wheel. The vertically sliding rack bar 38 is mounted in a guide 52 which acts to hold this rack bar to its work and against the teeth of the gear wheel 46.

In order that the slide 4! may be vertically adjusted to take up wear in the wheels 38 and 39 or to adjust these wheels to suit variations in cans, I provide a shim 53 disposed within the groove of the member 48 and provide adjusting screws 54, which can be turned to lift the shim and thus lift-the slide bar 4|.

'In the use of this mechanism for the purpose of unsealing cans, a can is placed upon the rotatable plate 23, the can being placed concentric to this plate 26 and with the flanged rim of the can disposed above-the wheels 38 and 39. As

soon as the can touches or engages against the rotatable plate 28, it is rotated in the direction of the arrow applied to plate 28 in Figure 1. The depression of the treadle also acts to pull downward on the rack bar #8, which rotates the gear wheel 48 in the direction of the arrow, drawing the slide M toward the left and pushing the slides 36 and 37 upward, bringing the wheels 38 and 39 can body and the reverted margin 12 of a can top B shifting this reverted margin of the can top and the flange a of the body of the can outward from a position where the margin of the can top and the flange a are parallel with the side wall of the can body to the position shown in Figure 4. The

can continues its rotation and the wedged out flange is now engaged by the wheel 39, as shown in Figure 5, which engagement forces the flange outward to a horizontal position, as shown in Figure 5. As the can is further rotated, this horizontal flange engages With the knife 30, the

sharpened edge of this knifecutting into the horizontal portion of the can top l3 and cutting the can top at the marginal fold, thus completely detaching the can top B from the can A. When the can has made an entire revolution and the can top has been completely separated along its margin from the flange of the can A, the pedal is lowered and the can removed and then another can may be put in place and the operation repeated.

It will be seen that the can itself is not harmed by this mechanism in any way. The can top has been cut off at the. fold but the flange a of the can remains perfect so that it is an easy matter to replace a can top on the flange a and again bend the margin of the can top over this flange and bend the composite flange down flat against the side of the can by machinery which is not part of my invention.

It is sometimes necessary to reflange a can body where the flange has been damaged or where the can body is not provided with a flange, and I have provided mechanism whereby this can be accomplished. To this end, the rotatable head 20, as shown in Figures 2 and 3, is provided upon its upper face with a radial recess 55, the bottom of which is inclined downward and outward and then straight outward, as shown in Figure 3. Disposed within this recess is a member 56 which extends radially outward to the rim of the head or wheel 20. center of the head 23 is a groove 51. The outer wall of this groove extends straight downward but the inner wall extends upward and then centrally, as at 58. This groove is extended across the member 56, as at 59. The outer wall of the groove 55 is perpendicular to the upper face of the head 23 but the inner wall is rounded upward and inward. Extending upward through the head 26 and through the member 55 is an adjusting screw 60, the lower end of the screw having an angular handle-6!. The inner end of the member 56 is loosely held to the head by a screw 62. Projecting radially from the head 20 is a stop' screw 63, which may be readily removed or replaced. When this stop screw 63 is in position and screwed outward to a sufficient degree, it will strike against the wall I0 and prevent 'any rotation of the head 20 with the rotating head 28. If now a can be placed in an inverted position upon the head 20 and the head'20 be lifted, the bottom of the can is brought upward against the rotating head 28 and the can is caused to rotate and the beveled face 58 turns the lower edge of the can outward, as shown in Figure 3. By adjusting the member 56 vertically, the extent of this flanging movement may be increased. Of course, where cans are to be flanged in this manner, the slides 36 and 31 with the wheels 38 and 39 are removed from their position in the guides 32 and 33.

The advantages of this machine are obvious from what has gone before. The machine is relatively simple and has been found to be thorwish to be limited thereto, as obviously many minor changes might be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is: 1. A machine for removing can tops including an upper driven shaft, a lower shaft formed in two sections, a' spring between the two sections of the shaft, a lower can supporting head mounted Extending concentrically to the upon the lower shaft, an upper can engaging head adapted to engage the top of the can and mounted upon the upper shaft, the heads confronting each other, a treadle connected to the lower shaft whereby the lower shaft and head may be raised to clamp a can between the heads, a support mounted adjacent the heads, vertical guides carried by said support, slides mounted in said guides for vertical movement, a beveled edged flange spreading wheel carried upon the upper end of one of said slides, a flat-faced wheel carried upon the other of said slides, a knife carried upon said support, the wheels and. the knife being disposed in the path of movement of the flange, said wheels as they are raised acting to spread the flange and-raise it to a horizontal position and the knife impinging against the margin of the raised flange to cut the top of the can at the margin, and means for raising said guides including a slide having cam-shaped recesses in its upper face in which the lower ends of said first named slides project, the second named slide having rack teeth, a gear wheel having teeth engaging the rack teeth, and a rod having rack teeth operatively connected at one end to said pedal and at the other end having its teeth engaging said gear wheel whereby upon the depression of the treadle the gear wheel will be rotated to shift the second named slide in a direction to cam the first named slides upward toward the upper head.

2. A machine of the character described, including a driven shaft, a freely rotatable opposed shaft, one of said shafts being movable toward or from the other shaft, heads carried by said shafts and between which a can may be clamped, a can flange-spreading element disposed in the path of movement of the rim of the can and shiftable toward or from the driven head, a cam reciprocatable to shift said spreading element toward the driven head, and unitary means for shifting the shafts toward each other to clamp a can between said heads and simultaneously shift said cam to its operative position.

3. A machine of the character described, including an upper driven shaft, a lower freely rotatable shaft, a can supporting head on the lower shaft, a can engaging head on the upper shaft, the freely rotatable shaft being movable toward or from the opposed shaft, a can flange-spreading element disposed in the path of movement of the rim of the can and vertically shiftable toward or from the upper head, a cam shiftable in tangential to the rotating heads and between the fixed head and the movable head, guides extending parallel to the shafts and carried upon said support, slides mounted in said guides, a straight cam movable longitudinally upon said support and having cam faces adapted to engage the adjacent ends of the slides to shift the slides toward the rotatable head, a bevel edged flange-spreading wheel carried upon one of said slides, a flat faced wheel carried upon the other of said slides, a knife carried upon said support, the wheels and knife being disposed in the path of movement of V the can flange, said wheels as they are shifted toward the driven head acting to spread the flange and move it to a position perpendicular to the can and the knife impinging against the margin of the raised flange to cut the top of the can at said margin, and unitary means for shifting one of said shafts toward the other and simultaneous- 0 1y shifting said cam in a direction to render the flange engaging wheels operative.

N. GAUTHIER. 

